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NOTAP automates registration of agreement

The National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion (NOTAP) has automated the process for registering technology transfer agreements. As a regulatory body established under the NOTAP Act of 2004, NOTAP monitors the transfer of foreign technology into Nigeria. Other functions include evaluating and registering technology transfer contracts between a company and a foreign entity.

Regulatory bodies in Nigeria usually demand NOTAP approval as a prerequisite for determining whether a transaction is valid. For instance, the local tax authority often requires NOTAP authorization as one of the conditions for treating a technical service fee as tax-deductible. Financial institutions also need this document before a company can get foreign currency, through the approved government channels, to pay an offshore entity for eligible services.

With effect from 2 September 2019, organizations will complete fresh applications for registration as well as renewal of technology transfer agreements online at https://techreg.notap.gov.ng/VendorReg/. New users of the portal will create a profile before proceeding further to use the online application. To register, a new user will state the name of the enterprise, official email, telephone number, password, RC Number and nature of business.

Before the automation, a company had to complete a paper application and then submit it alongside supporting documents at the headquarters in Abuja. This took more time, resources as well as the inherent bureaucracies. The portal, if executed, will, thus, lessen the pitfalls encountered in a manual approach.

Interested businesses can easily send a formal application at any time and anywhere, thus lowering the difficulty, time and cost of obtaining regulatory approval. Likewise, NOTAP must issue guidelines on navigating the portal and a dedicated technical team that will solve users’ questions. In conclusion, NOTAP must provide constant access to the portal to tackle technology downtime; otherwise, provision should be available for submitting a manual application.